MITHILA PAINTING TRAINING CENTRE

Mithila Training Centre began with the vision of Mr. Ram Kumar Das, a Mining Engineer by profession. Having lived all his life in the cities, he returned to his native village of Keoti in 2010 with a dream - to work for the upliftment and betterment of his community

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Wednesday, 22 May 2013

Madhubani, or Mithila, painting is a folk painting of northern India. It is mostly practiced by women in the villages who have passed this art to their daughters through multiple generations. They paint pictures of nature and mythology to depict different events like birth, marriage, and cycles of life. Though this folk art has been practiced for centuries it started to gain national recognition... only in the last few decades. Now, art patrons can find Madhubani artists in several cities of northern India, many of whom are experimenting and adapting the traditional styles to modern ethos and medium. The area of Mithila lies near the border of India and Nepal and carries a rich pastel of cultural legacy in art and literature. Its heritage goes back at least 2,500 years and its celebrated figures include the Buddha and Mahavira. It is also the birthplace of Sita, the central character in Ramayana. Hence, her life stories are frequently depicted in the local art. The paintings are traditionally based on mythological, folk themes and pastoral symbols. The central themes of most paintings are love, valor, devotion and fertility, though the approach may vary. So it is common to find scenes of courtship and marriages and symbols of fertility and prosperity like fish, parrot, elephant, turtle, sun, moon, bamboo tree, lotus, etc. in prominence. The divine beings are positioned centrally in the frame while their consorts and floral motifs form the background. The human figures are mostly abstract and linear in form. Even though this art is centuries old, it has preserved its original style and content in its native land of Mithila. Nowadays synthetic colors are used but traditional artists still make their own colors by extracting them from plants. The coloring is of two styles – Kachni (hatching) and Bharni (shading.) Kachni uses delicate fine lines to fill the painting and not much color is used. Bharni (shading) uses solid colors to shade and fill the pictures. It uses black outlines filled with vibrant colors. A variety of inventive patterns are made with hatching and stippling. Even now during birth and marriage ceremonies paintings are made on walls with different symbols like bamboo (lineage,) lotus, and fish. The designs announce the occasion of the celebration and solicit good fortune and divine blessings.See More

Sunday, 10 March 2013

Madhubani paintings as the name says get its name from Mithila region of Bihar
where it is widely practised particularly by women. The history of Madhubani
paintings goes back to the time of Ramayana when King Janak commissioned artists
to do paintings at the time of marriage of his daughter, Sita, to Lord Ram.
Initially women of upper castes like Brahmans and Kayasthas were using such
paintings but later on followed by other castes also. Originally the painting
was done on freshly plastered mud wall of huts, but now it is also done on
cloth, hand-made paper and canvas.

Madhubani painting mostly depict
nature and Hindu religious figures and the themes generally associated with
Hindu deities, Natural objects like sun, moon, and religious plants like tulsi.
Besides this scenes from the royal court and social events like weddings are
also widely drawn. Madhubani Paintings has two varieties: Bhittichitra and
Aripana. Generally Bhittichitra is done on the mud-walls of houses particularly
at three places: room of the family god/goddess, room of the newly wedded couple
and the drawing room. Also Paintings are done on the outer and inner walls of
these rooms on some auspicious occasions like marriage, upnayana and festivities
like Dussehra and Deepawali.

Figures that are widely used are figures of
various god and goddesses depicting Durga, Kali, Ram and Sita, Radha and
Krishna, Shiva and Parvati, Gauri and Ganesha, the ten incarnations of Vishnu.
Besides these pictures of Sun and Moon are also painted because it is believed
that they bring prosperity and joy to the family. Other figures used are figures
of various animals, birds, leaves, flowers, plants along with symbols of
swastika, shankha. Mostly used colours in these paintings are deep colours like
red, green, blue and black. Besides, deep colours other colours like yellow,
pink, and lemon are also used. All these colours are prepared by indigenous
methods form some household products like banana leaves, milk and vermilion.

Tuesday, 23 October 2012

For centuries, the
women of the Mithila region of northern Bihar and southern Nepal have done wall
and floor paintings on the occasion of marriages and other domestic rituals.
These paintings, inside their homes, on the internal and external walls of
their compounds, and on the ground inside or around their homes, create sacred,
protective, and auspicious spaces for their families and their rituals.
Although the images were similar, women of different castes developed distinctive
styles of painting.

Many women have been
recognized as artists of national and international stature. Furthermore, women
of several castes, are now painting which brought diversity in designs and
motifs used, along with the subject matter of the paintings has expanded to
include ancient epics, local legends and tales, domestic, rural, and community
life, ritual, local, national, and international politics, as well as the
painters' own life stories. Artists of different castes and genders are now
borrowing themes and styles from one another. Mithila painting has demonstrated
extraordinary vitality and become a vibrant and aesthetically powerful
tradition.

These paintings,
containing sacred symbols, are believed to bring good luck and prosperity in
the household.When used on fabric, they
bring style statement with a gracious combination of ethnicity and modernity. The
women in Keoti, a village in North Bihar, are engaged in making these beautiful
paintings, which can adorn your walls or become your style statement, while you
contribute towards their livelihood with dignity.

Monday, 30 July 2012

PS: This was a quickie project (10 mins) and I very boldly used a gel pen .. Excuse me for the imperfections

This style is typically characterized by a double border that gives it a almost 3-dimensional look. Also pay attention to the typical motifs & designs.

I hope this step by step guide is helpful in teaching young kids to make one of their own. While on this subject, Do take out time to explore other contexts
What is Folk art?
Which part of Indian is famous for this style of folk art?
Which characters are typically painted?
How similar or dissimilar it is to other folk arts near this region?
Are there different styles within madhubani . If so, whats the difference between them?
What is the typical folk attire of that region?
What is the typical food style & occupation of the region?

If art is understood in these ways, in terms of its functions, in terms of what it's for, in terms of why it's made and displayed, we have a solid and rich foundation upon which art appreciation will thrive

Sunday, 8 July 2012

Mithila Painting : Introduction and Importance

For centuries, the women of the Mithila region of northern Bihar and southern
Nepal have done wall and floor paintings on the occasion of marriages and other
domestic rituals. These paintings, inside their homes, on the internal and
external walls of their compounds, and on the ground inside or around their
homes, create sacred, protective, and auspicious spaces for their families and
their rituals. Although the images were similar, women of different castes
developed distinctive styles of painting.
In the aftermath of a major earthquake in 1934, William Archer, the local
Collector, inspecting the damage in Mithila's villages, saw these wall and floor
paintings for the first time and subsequently photographed a number of them.
Recognizing their great beauty, he and his wife, Mildred, brought them to wider
attention in several publications. In the 1950s and early 1960s several Indian
scholars and artists visited the region and also became enamored of the
paintings. But it was not until 1966, in the midst of a major drought, that the
All India Handicrafts Board sent an artist, Baskar Kulkarni, to Mithila to
encourage the women to make paintings on paper that they could sell as a new
source of family income.
Although traditionally, women of several castes painted, Kulkarni was only
able to convince a small group of Mahapatra Brahmin and Kayastha women to paint
on paper. By the late 1960s and early 1970s, two of these women, Sita Devi and
Ganga Devi were recognized as great artists both in India where they received
numerous commissions, and in Europe, Japan, Russia, and the United States where
they represented India in cultural fairs and expositions. Their success and
active encouragement led scores of other women to paint. Many of these women
have also been recognized as artists of national and international stature.
Furthermore, women of several other castes, are now paintingmost especially the
Dusadh, a Dalit community, and also small numbers of men.
Over time, aside from the growing diversity of people painting, the subject
matter of the paintings has expanded to include ancient epics, local legends and
tales, domestic, rural, and community life, ritual, local, national, and
international politics, as well as the painters' own life histories. Artists of
different castes and genders are now borrowing themes and styles from one
another. Mithila painting has demonstrated extraordinary vitality and become a
vibrant and aesthetically powerful tradition.

Monday, 5 March 2012

Madhubani painting originated in a small village, of the Bihar state of India. Initially, the womenfolk of the village drew the paintings on the walls of their home, as an illustration of their thoughts, hopes and dreams. With time, the paintings started becoming a part of festivities and special events, like marriage. Slowly and gradually, the Madhubani painting of India crossed the traditional boundaries and started reaching connoisseurs of art, both at the national as well as the international level.

The traditional base of freshly plastered mud wall of huts has now been replaced by cloth, handmade paper and canvas. Since the paintings have been confined to a limited geographical range, the themes as well as the style are, more or less, the same. Indian Maithili paintings make use of three-dimensional images and the colors that are used are derived mainly from plants. The themes on which these paintings are based include nature and mythological events. The first reference to the Maithili painting of Bihar dates back to the time of Ramayana, when King Janaka ordered the paintings to be created for his daughter, Sita's, wedding.

Themes of Maithili Paintings
Themes of the Maithili painting of Bihar revolve around Hindu deities like Krishna, Rama, Lakshmi, Shiva, Durga and Saraswati. The natural themes that are used include the Sun, the Moon and the religious plants like tulsi. One can also find paintings based on scenes from the royal courts and social events, like weddings. If any empty space is left after painting the main theme, it is filled up with the motifs of flowers, animals and birds or geometric designs.

Making Madhubani Paintings
The brush used for Madhubani paintings of Bihar was made of cotton, wrapped around a bamboo stick. The artists prepare the colors that are used for the paintings. Black color is made by adding soot to cow dung; yellow from combining turmeric (or pollen or lime) with the milk of banyan leaves; blue from indigo; red from the kusam flower juice or red sandalwood; green from the leaves of the wood apple tree; white from rice powder and orange from palasha flowers. There is no shading in the application of colors. A double line is drawn for outlines and the gap is filled with either cross or straight tiny lines. The linear Maithili paintings do not even require application of colors; only the outlines are drawn.